Study Up Before Bull Buying:Four considerations to help you choose the right sires for your herd

摘要

Mailboxes and email inboxes are filling up with bull sale catalogs and announcements. Sifting through all the data, pedigrees and photos can be overwhelming. Here are four considerations to keep in mind when shopping for herd sires:1 Set job goals. Dan Moser, president of Angus Genetics Inc., advises writing a "job description" for each bull. Start out simple with determining if they'll be breeding mature cows or replacement heifers. Next, decide if you'll retain females or if allthe cattle will go to a terminal market, which will impact the traits you target.